Mukran: Harbor becomes deeper for larger ships and more grain!

Mukran: Harbor becomes deeper for larger ships and more grain!

at the port of Mukran on the picturesque island of Rügen is currently being shoveled eagerly. Here the harbor basin is dredged to reach a uniform water depth of almost 15 meters. This should arouse great interest in shipping, especially in the area of ​​grain handling. Larger ships are to be attracted, which could not only benefit agriculture, but also to the envelope of liquid gas (LNG). The work started last week and are planned by the end of August or early September 2025, as [n-tv] (https://www.n-tv.de/regionales/mecklenburg-vormern/hafen-mukran-wran-wer- Mehr-Mehrer-Mehrt-article25875664.html) reported.

The main goal of these measures is to design the port and the inner harbor basin in such a way that ships can easily create a draft of more than 12 meters. Before the construction work, there was no uniform water depth in the port, which had significantly restricted the use. A remarkable aspect is that the work is not related to an earlier incident in which an LNG tanker ran aground; That happened in a completely different place.

lull in the LNG envelope

mopo is delivered less liquid gas than originally expected. Instead of the planned two terminal ships, only one thing is in use, which leads to a lean capacity of just five percent of the anxiety capacity in the first quarter of 2025. The German Environmental Aid (DUH) sees the terminal critically and describes it as a "bad investment with announcement". The problems with the terminal are piling up because it does not represent a real benefit for energy supply in Germany.

The Federal Government had already decided to build several LNG terminals on the North and Baltic Sea in response to the Russian attack war in Ukraine in 2022. The LNG acceleration law recently came into force to advance the quick establishment of this infrastructure. So far, terminals have already been in operation in Wilhelmshaven, Brunsbüttel and Lubmin, whose total capacity reaches around 13.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas per year. However, experts estimate that only eight percent of gas deliveries to Germany are currently being carried out via LNG tankers.

The port of Mukran in focus

The criticism of the Mukran terminal is also due to the geopolitical circumstances. The operating company plans to continue to reduce LNG to other countries, which does not support the country's security of supply. According to the DUH, Mukran is ultimately dispensable. The situation did not get better by termination of the charter contract for one of the terminal ships in January 2025. The Federal Government emphasizes that the need for the LNG infrastructure CIS should be planned for future hydrogen use, which could pave the way into sustainable energy future.

The discussion about the LNG terminal in Mukran clearly shows how complex the challenges in energy supply in Germany are. It remains to be seen whether the extensive renovation measures in the port lead to an economic upswing. One thing is clear: in the present time, quick action is required, the course for an efficient care structure must be set - and taking into account all circumstances.